Feminist foreign policy

Equality between women and men is a fundamental aim of Swedish foreign policy. Ensuring that women and girls can enjoy their fundamental human rights is both an obligation within the framework of our international commitments, and a prerequisite for reaching Sweden’s broader foreign policy goals on peace, and security and sustainable development.

Feminist foreign policy

Photo: Ingemar Edfalk/Riksdagsförvaltningen

Statement of Foreign Policy 2016

The situation in the world calls for a feminist foreign policy that aims to strengthen women's rights, representation and access to resources. In 2015, Sweden helped ensure that the EU appointed a Principal Advisor on Gender, and that a network of women mediators was formed. We will continue our work to involve women in peace processes, in accordance with our action plan. By involving women in the Syrian peace talks, we can help ensure a more sustainable society.

This action plan sets the direction of feminist foreign policy action to be taken by the Foreign Service, guided by six long-term objectives. These are broad objectives to match broad challenges, cover the entire global agenda and bring the whole gamut of foreign policy tools into play.

"The EU must lead by example. To be credible, we need to show that there is a link between our internal and external action and that we apply a gender perspective when we build our organisations, form our negotiating teams and staff our missions," emphasised Minister for Foreign Affairs Margot Wallström when she spoke about Sweden's feminist foreign policy at a public lecture in Brussels on 14 March.Photo: Anna-Charlotta Erikson, The Permanent Representation of Sweden to the EU

Public lecture with Margot Wallström on feminist foreign policy

In 2014, as newly-appointed Minister for Foreign Affairs, Margot Wallström launched Sweden’s feminist foreign policy. At a public lecture in Brussels on 14 March, she spoke about the content and implementation of this policy. Ms Wallström stressed the reasons why women need to be at the negotiating table in peace talks, and the responsibility the European Union has to make a difference, in particular with regard to external relations.

Women’s participation helps ensure that peace is more sustainable

Fifteen years ago, 31 October 2000, the United Nations Security Council adopted resolution 1325 on women, peace and security. But far too often, women are still excluded, which poses a threat to peace and security and sustainable development in several parts of the world. Sweden is therefore working actively to promote the agenda for women, peace and security.

Minister for International Development Cooperation Isabella LövinPhoto: Kristian Pohl/Government Offices of Sweden

Sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) for women and girls in a crisis-prone world

Isabella Lövin, Minister for International Development Cooperation, opened a seminar in Stockholm on 3 December about SRHR in humanitarian situations. Ms Lövin emphasised that conflict and natural disasters affect women, men, girls and boys in different ways.

What a feminist foreign policy can do

"I am here to talk about why Sweden is the first country to declare that we will pursue a feminist foreign policy" Minister for Foreign Affairs Margot Wallström explained in a lecture at Helsinki University, 3 March 2015. "Sweden’s feminist foreign policy aims at ensuring women’s rights and participation in central decision-making processes, including in peacebuilding efforts and peace negotiations. Gender equality is not just the right thing to do. It is the necessary thing to do if we want to achieve our wider security and foreign policy objectives."

Related:

A Feminist Government

Sweden has the first feminist government in the world. This means that gender equality is central to the Government’s priorities – in decision-making and resource allocation. A feminist government ensures that a gender equality perspective is brought into policy-making on a broad front, both nationally and internationally. Women and men must have the same power to shape society and their own lives. This is a human right and a matter of democracy and justice. Gender equality is also part of the solution to society’s challenges and a matter of course in a modern welfare state – for justice and economic development. The Government’s most important tool for implementing feminist policy is gender mainstreaming, of which gender-responsive budgeting is an important component.

Swedish Foreign Policy News

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